Detectable needles expected to help |
Schering-Plough Animal Health Corporation has reached agreement with a Canadian firm to market a new line of hypodermic needles that are nearly 100 percent detectable by the leading metal scanners used by meat processors, the company announced today at the American Association of Swine Veterinarians conference.
PDN needles, designed specifically for livestock and manufactured by Process Detectable Needles, Inc., Winnipeg, Canada, are made of a unique stainless steel alloy that has proved to be highly detectable in meat processing. Tests conducted by the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and independent studies in Canada have shown the needles to be 99.9 percent detectable using scanners made by LOMA and Safeline Detection Systems.
‘Maximize safety and value’
“Today it’s not enough for an animal health company to develop and market vaccines and pharmaceuticals for veterinarians and producers,” said Keith Watts, director of Schering-Plough Animal Health’s Pork Industry Team, a special group of marketing, sales and technical service professionals formed last year to focus exclusively on meeting the needs of swine practitioners and producers.
“We have to step back and look at the big picture. We need to develop systems that will benefit the entire pork chain. Our partnership with PDN helps us meet that objective, while helping the meat industry maximize the safety and value of its products.”
Following a five-year research effort on the potential risk of metal contaminants from broken needles, the NPPC recently announced a program called “One is Too Many,” which sets a zero-tolerance standard for broken needles in meat.
Although Schering-Plough Animal Health’s announcement dovetails with the NPPC initiative, Watts says the company started looking at process-detectable needles more than six months ago.
“PDN was testing the needle with Seaboard Farms, Inc., who was aware of our interest in this technology and asked us to get involved,” Watts said. “We saw not only a superior and safer delivery system, but an opportunity to minimize risks associated with physical hazards and to give the entire pork chain more peace of mind.”
Big difference
A hypodermic needle is comprised of two parts: a hollow metallic shaft (the cannula) through which the material is injected into the animal, and the hub, which attaches the cannula to the syringe.
PDN needles look and function like standard needles used in modern livestock production. The big differences are the product’s proprietary alloy, which has proved to be up to 90 percent more process detectable than stainless steels used today, and the polypropylene hub, which is reinforced to be stronger than typical plastic hubs.
“The average detectability rate of standard needles is around 10 percent, according to tests conducted by NPPC, as well as in independent trials in Canada,” said Grant Humphrey, the product’s inventor and president of PDN. “PDN needles have proved to be 99.9 percent detectable.”
Like needles with aluminum hubs, PDN needles bend at the junction of the hub and the needle. “The main difference is that if users try to straighten a bent needle — a practice that can encourage breakage — they will break the epoxy bond and the needle will not be usable,” Humphrey explains.
Impressive design
Independent engineers are also impressed with the needle’s design.
“The needle/hub assembly does an excellent job transferring a lateral load caused by animal movement from the needle/hub joint to the hub material itself, without causing the hub to completely sever from the entire assembly,” noted Dr. Steve Hoff, Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Iowa State University.
“In this way, the hub and needle stay intact during severe, unrestrained animal movement but enough damage is done that re-use is not an option.”
While Schering-Plough Animal Health will initially market the needles in North America in conjunction with its growing line of swine vaccines, the company also plans to market them to the U.S. and Canadian cattle industries as well.
Schering-Plough Animal Health plans to begin shipping PDN needles in North America by June 2001. They will be available in six sizes ranging from 14 to 20 gauge. While pricing has not yet been announced, the cost in Canada currently averages about CDN 6 cents per hog based on 10 uses per needle, or an equivalent of US 4 cents per hog.
“Process detectable needles are more expensive to produce due to the additional cost of the raw materials,” Watts said. “The added costs, however, are far outweighed by the potential benefits to the pork industry.”